Now the human rights watchdog the Council of Europe says slavery is back in Europe - and governments are not doing enough to fight it.

The 25 EU countries are among the 46 member countries of the Strasbourg-based Council which approved a new convention in May 2005 to strengthen the campaign against trafficking in human beings.

To come into force it requires signature and ratification by at least eight of the 46 nations.

The current tally stands at 33 signatures but ratification by just three countries - Austria, Moldova and Romania.

The UK and Ireland have done neither.

Eighteen EU countries have signed but not ratified, and Austria is the only EU member state to have done both.

Council of Europe Secretary-General Terry Davis, the former Labour MP for Birmingham Hodge Hill, used today's International Day for the Abolition of Slavery to call for the EU to take the lead and back the convention as soon as possible.

He said in a statement: "Every year hundreds of thousands of human beings, mostly women and young girls, are bought and sold in Europe.

"The politically correct terminology for this outrage is trafficking in human beings, but the fact is that slavery is back in Europe, and that our governments are not doing enough to fight it."

Mr Davis said the new convention the leaders of all 46 countries approved in May 2005 introduced ground-breaking methods of fighting international trafficking in human beings.

The idea is to crack down on the trade in human beings by actively involving the victims, offering them incentives to break free and help the authorities prosecute the traffickers.

Mr Davis said the convention's provisions ensured that those suffering from "this modern form of slavery" were treated as victims instead of "illegal merchandise or associates in crime."

But he went on: "Regrettably, 18 months after it has been opened for signature, the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings has only been ratified by three countries and has not yet entered into force.

"I call on all European countries which have not yet signed or ratified the Convention, to do it as quickly as possible, and I would also encourage the European Union to set an example and take the lead."